NEW LONDON, Conn. — The Connecticut College women's volleyball team picked up a 3-1 victory over the United States Coast Guard Academy on Wednesday night in non-conference action at Luce Field House.
The Camels—who won by set scores of 25-19, 19-25, 25-22 and 25-14—earned their first win against the Bears since 2012.
Rae Wartelle (Tacoma, Wash.) paved the way with a match-high 16 kills and had a hand in six of Conn's 11 blocks on the night.
Taylor Chatigny (Naples, Fla.) also chipped in 11 kills while
Aubrie Letourneau (Mattapoisett, Mass.) supplied a season-high 51 assists to go with six digs.
Amelia Matson and Corey Lemmer led Coast Guard with 12 and 11 kills, respectively. The Bears dropped to 10-7 on the year.
Vibha Sheth (Austin, Texas) got things going for the Camels early, supplying a block on the opening rally and a kill on the second en route to a 4-0 advantage. Conn never trailed in the stanza and led 21-12 before weathering a 6-1 run that trimmed the lead to five. However, another kill by Sheth righted the ship, and a block by Sheth and
Grace Anderson (Pawling, N.Y.) later secured set point.
Matson and Lemmer combined for eight kills in the second set as the Bears rallied to tie the match at 1-1. In the third, Conn got out to a 5-0 start before Laila Baameur served Coast Guard to 10 straight points and an 11-7 advantage. The Camels played from behind until clinching the set with a 7-2 spurt that included three kills and a block from Anderson.
With momentum on their side, the Camels pulled away midway through the fourth set behind a 10-2 burst that yielded a 21-11 lead. Chatigny racked up five kills in the frame to bring Conn to the finish, and a block by
Tilde Keatley (Pasadena, Calif.) sealed the match for the hosts.
Anderson finished with nine kills, a block solo and four block assists while Sheth added eight kills and three block assists.
Taylor Merrifield (Honolulu, Hawaii) led the defense with a career-best 31 digs and also tacked on three service aces.
Conn (9-8 overall, 1-5 NESCAC) will play at Amherst College on Friday, October 17 at 7:00 p.m.
